Germany's Exports Rose 1 Percent in 2002

Published 8:00 pm, Sunday, December 29, 2002

German exports rose by 1 percent this year while imports dropped by 4 percent, resulting in a big increase in the country's trade surplus, according to preliminary figures released Monday.

Based on figures from January through October and estimates for the rest of the year, the Federal Statistics Office said that Germany this year exported goods worth 647 billion euros ($675 billion), compared with 638.3 billion euros in 2001.

Imports added up to 520 billion euros ($542 billion), down from 542.8 billion euros last year.

That would see the trade surplus of Europe's biggest economy increase to 127 billion euros ($132 billion) from 95.5 billion euros _ a 33 percent rise on the 2001 figure, which already was the highest in post-World War II Germany, the office said.

Final trade figures will be released in February.

While exports remain strong, Germany has been mired in near-zero growth for more than a year.

Weighing on the economy is uncertainty about when a recovery might occur and whether it will be strong enough to dent the country's unemployment rate of 9.7 percent.